SYNOPSIS:
Blessed with the extraordinary gift of guiding
the imaginations of others, Doctor Parnassus (Christopher
Plummer) is cursed with a dark secret. An inveterate gambler,
thousands of years ago he made a bet with the devil, Mr. Nick
(Tom Waits), in which he won immortality. Centuries later,
on meeting his one true love, Dr. Parnassus made another deal
with the devil, trading his immortality for youth, on condition
that when his daughter reached her 16th birthday, she would
become the property of Mr Nick. Valentina (Lily Cole) is now
rapidly approaching this ‘coming of age’ milestone
and Dr. Parnassus is desperate to protect her from her impending
fate. Mr. Nick arrives to collect but, always keen to make
a bet, renegotiates the wager. Now the winner of Valentina
will be determined by whoever seduces the first five souls.
Enlisting a series of wild, comical and compelling characters
in his journey, Dr. Parnassus promises his daughter’s
hand in marriage to the man that helps him win. In this captivating,
explosive and wonderfully imaginative race against time, Dr.
Parnassus must fight to save his daughter in a never-ending
landscape of surreal obstacles – and undo the mistakes
of his past once and for all!
MOVIE REVIEW:
By name, this may be the imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus- a 19th century monk who made a pact with the devil a thousand years ago for immortality- but in truth, this is really the imaginarium of Terry Gilliam. Beginning with his Monty Python days, Gilliam has been known as the mad visionary behind films such as "Brazil", "Time Bandits" and "The Fisher King"- though audiences may be more familiar with his more recent and more commercial works such as "Twelve Monkeys" and "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas".
Still, those were more than a decade ago, and in the last ten years, Gilliam's works such as "The Brothers Grimm" and "Tideland" were largely panned. "The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus" is no doubt one of Gilliam's best in years, and the filmmaker is all the more deserving of praise for having steered his film through the sudden and unfortunate passing of its lead star, Heath Ledger, back in 2008 in the midst of filming.
Most reminiscent of Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking Glass, the Imaginarium is a world which Doctor Parnassus invites the audience of his ramshackle travelling circus to enter through a mirrored partition. Anything goes in the Imaginarium, and often they are fantastical CGI candy-coloured playgrounds driven as much by Doctor Parnassus' own imagination as the individuals' own.
But of course, as the saying goes, the mind can also be the playground of the devil, and this also becomes a place where St Nick collects his souls. Parnassus has to deliver five souls within two days to save his daughter's own (Lily Cole) which he wagered in return for eternal life. So while the Imaginarium may look deliciously alluring, it is also deceptively so, and great perils await the person who enters.
It is tempting to dismiss these fantasy sequences within the Imaginarium as incongruous to the narrative, seeing as how they seem as random and fickle as the imagination of a child. But one would do well to accept them as the Imaginarium of Terry Gilliam, as self-indulgent as it is enthralling, and simply enjoy his visual panache on generous display. Those familiar with his works will enjoy his whimsical touches in creating the world of the Imaginarium, an Alice-in-Wonderland like surrealistic phantasmagoria bursting with colour and energy at every turn.
Storytelling has not been one of Gilliam's strengths, and here once again, his visual flair triumphs over a story that is sometimes as rickety as the very circus that Parnassus travels in. There are themes of destiny, free will, and the lure of the devil thrown about, but Gilliam seems at a loss to develop any of them into a coherent and convincing whole. As a result, the film seems noticeably hectic and messy, and some may inevitably ponder at the very end what exactly Gilliam was trying to get at.
Still, part of that disorderliness would no doubt have been due to Heath Ledger's passing and Gilliam's having to rewrite his screenplay (co-written with frequent collaborator Charles McKeown) well into filming. Ledger is hence replaced in the CGI sequences by three other stars- Johnny Depp, Jude Law and Colin Farrell- and the change is inspired in how seamless it is, each of the stars as Ledger's alter ego effortlessly channelling Ledger's smooth-talking scheming character into their own performances.
For the very reason that this film is Ledger's final performance, "The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus" is requisite viewing to see why Ledger is one of the most talented young actors of our generation who constantly challenged himself in varied roles in films of different genres. But the film is notable not just for Ledger's death, but also of the visually gifted Terry Gilliam's rebirth- yes, this is undeniably one of his best works in years, and fans of Gilliam since his Monty Python days should find much reason to cheer for his return to form.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
The extras on this Code 3 DVD prove to be just as interesting as the feature film itself. Gilliam's wry, sardonic tone is apparent in both the brief "Introduction by Terry Gilliam" and the film's audio commentary. In particular, Gilliam's passion for his material shines through in his informative commentary that is also heavily self-aware in its reflections that this is Heath Ledger's last film.
There is a deleted scene showing an extended sequence of a boy getting lost in the Imaginarium that comes with an optional commentary by Gilliam. Some of the parts of the sequence are work-in-progress and Gilliam's walk-through is an interesting look at the postproduction work of the film.
Three behind-the-scenes featurettes are also presented here. "Behind the Mirror" has both cast and crew talking about the concept of the Imaginarium, while "Building the Monastery" is a more specific and in-depth explanation of how Gilliam and his production team constructed the monastery where Parnassus first meets the Devil from storyboarding, to model building, to the CGI work. Finally, Gilliam shares his inspiration behind the concept art of the film in "The Artwork of Doctor Parnassus".
As a tribute to Heath Ledger, the "Heath Ledger Wardrobe Test" shows Ledger at his most playful and vivacious as he tries out the various outlandish costumes for the film. There is also a brief "Interview with Heath Ledger" that is basically an audio interview recorded in late 2007 cut with various stills from the film.
The last two extras show footage from the film's premiere. "Dr. Parnassus Around the World" is a collection of red carpet appearances by the cast and director, and "Cast and Crew Presentation on Stage" has Gilliam introducing the cast and crew one by one to a premiere audience.
AUDIO/VISUAL:
Audio is presented in Dolby Digital 2.0, which sadly doesn't utilise the rear speakers to build a more involving experience for the audience during the film's fantasy sequences. Visual transfer though is flawless, and the sharpness of the picture makes it even clearer than when this reviewer saw it in the theatres.
MOVIE RATING:
DVD
RATING:
Review by Gabriel Chong
Posted on 1 Jun 2010
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